How can fossilized wood be cut straight against the grain?

Question

i found a piece that is about an inch by and inch, by half an inch. i know when wood burns it can "cube", but this shows no sign of burning, or breaking, how did the square cuts against the grain get into the wood in the first place?

Answer 1

They use a saw. The properties of petrified wood are different from wood becuase petrified wood is mostly silica and wood is mostly cellulose. The two have different properties.

Answer 2

It is a chunk of rock now. The effects of the wood grain have gone away.  It was not laid down in layers so it does not have a stone grain.  If the larger piece of rock it came from was broken or crushed, the shear would go straight, forming blocks. Rounded rocks have been tumbled in water, shattered rocks have flat sides and sharp corners.  It might have been cut by a person and dropped.